Title: Pave Forward
Size: 24 x 24 Medium: Acrylic on Canvas Date of Completion: 11 - 6 - 2021 For this artwork, I wanted to focus on this being a chance to improve upon my technique and my representation of my theme. For this project, I primarily wanted to expand upon my use of color, as well as my use of lighting and texture. In terms of my theme, I wanted this to reflect how the time of day can present us with more opportunities. |
Artist Inspiration
My inspiration for this work was Jeroslav Valecka, a painter born in Czechoslovakia who graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. His works frequently feature roads, though these roads often have varying circumstances. These can vary from roads leading into cold distances, buildings, or even explosions. The roads heavily differ, and are expressed through his unique technique in blending. He's capable of differentiating the different objects present in his work with ease, while also making them look like they belong, similar to how a landscape can appear. They can have many things while still looking like they belong there. I wanted to replicate this style in the artwork, trying to make it look like the things in my picture belongs. His technique was also a heavy reason why I wanted to expand on my use of texture.
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Planning Sketches
Before this project even began, I wanted to narrow down my options by deciding how I wanted to represent my theme of time. I had eventually decided that I wanted to represent how many people function during the day, and how it can be more difficult or restricted to act throughout the night. If I wanted to make another project where the times were split apart, I would consider adding obstruction to the darker side of the artwork to exaggerate the challenges that can arrive during the time. While I had narrowed down what exactly how I wanted to represent my theme, I had still struggled determining exactly what I wanted to use in order to represent that theme. I had gone through at least two ideas before I came to a solid conclusion. The first example that I was using was the depths of a canyon, where light would shine through the right, showing a clear path from the top to the bottom of the canyon, and the left would be a dark, seemingly dangerous end of the canyon with no way out. This would represent the ability to move freely in the day, and the difficulties and risks of trying to do so at night.
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My second example that I was considering was one of the views of the horizon, with a clear road in the center going off to the distance. This would be a direct representation of what I wanted to represent with the theme, being a literal (obstructed) path split into day and night. The left side would be the dark area, with an old road made by pebbles and grains. The road would be filled with several obstructions that would make it difficult to drive through, or difficult (, even risky to,) pass in general. The view of the sky in the horizon would be mostly blocked by massive hills in the distance. The right side would represent the daytime, and would be considered similar to a polar opposite to the left side. The right path would be considerably new, with essentially no obstruction. I was considering adding additional roads to the side to represent the numerous opportunities, and a clear view of the horizon to represent certainty in what a person could see
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As for what exactly I wanted to use in the pictures, I had to figure out for myself. For the canyon, it would likely be represented with mostly rocks, given the location. I also wanted to determine if I should show the darker side of the canyon crumbling to emphasize the danger in the area, and how effectively I would be able to replicate that into my work. I had experimented with how the bright side of the canyon and its path would be shaped, as well as attempting to add vague hints of texture across the stone in the area. Since certain areas would be lacking in objects themselves (primarily the bright regions), I felt like this project would be a strong opportunity to improve on my use of texture within my work. Since I'm using brighter colors on the clear areas, I feel that it will be much easier to implement texture compared to my previous works, which often had strong colors that were difficult to overlap with. This is why, I had ultimately chose to use the road as my final idea.
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When considering how I wanted to present the road, I primarily wanted to think about how I would be able to implement texture on the darker side of the road. In order to implement the specific, old road, I would need to practice on a better way to implement texture when working with stronger colors. In this case, I would have to develop on my use of black in an attempt to blend into, or in some cases, overlap some of the colors that are already in placed. As for obstruction, I was considering adding things like damaged parts of the roads, roadkill, or even broken parts from a vehicle to represent any accidents in the area. It emphasizes the risk, the difficulty of reaching the destination, and even references cognitive abilities of others. The obstructed horizon would resemble how difficult it is to look ahead at night, both in a literal sense and a figurative sense, as many people are often reacting slower or entirely drowsy during the night time.
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Process and Experimentation
Similar to my other painted projects, I started by developing the sketch of what exactly I wanted to paint, to help keep me from going completely off-shape. This time however, I made the lines barely visible and limited the amount of lines overall. I wanted a sketch that gave me an idea of what I wanted to make without being extremely strict about how I wanted to make it. This helped minimize the amount of lines that would appear visible after it was painted, while still helping me coordinate the placement of my paints. At this point, I was still contemplating in particular how I wanted to separate the views between night and day. I then started forming the dark colored paints I wanted to use. The road was a mixture of black and blue, where I wanted it to have the atmosphere of the night. The grass was formed in a similar manner, but also used significantly more blue to maintain the blue tone. These would be the two most used colors on these sides, so unlike other projects, I had attempted to make much more, even if I was unsure I would need it all. I began by making the road its general black color, where I would add lighter tones to it later. I also did this process to the water, but I used swirling brush strokes to give it some level of texture.
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Then, after the road and water was painted in, I began to move onto the grass. The green I was using for the grass would be the most prominent color in this area of the artwork, so I had to prepare significantly more than what I used for the roads and water. The grass on this area of the painting would take up some of the area on the road, making it rigid and hard to see in comparison to the grass. The grass would also play an important role for the hill present in the picture. It would obscure the view of the sky on the darker side of the painting, and would be useful for generating different tones of green later. As I filled in the hill, I progressively began to add a little more yellow to change the tone of the green. Since yellow wasn't a very strong color, it made it much easier to change the tone without being excessive, unlike the previous project. This resulted in the hills looking far less like layers compared to the other project. Then, by adding mostly red and a bit of yellow to the old green color, I was able to generate a brown to resemble a fence post. I then attempted to use white to generate the connection between the fence posts, though this worked to a very limited extent. It does not look like a wire, and it does happen to stand out significantly.
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Then for the next portion of the project, it would likely become more simple in terms of expression due to how I wanted to present it thematically. Since I wanted to represent the opportunities, clear views, and accessibility of working in the daytime, the right side of the project would be relatively clear with little interruption. To emphasize the opportunities present, I had developed two more roads to represent extra choices. I also made this road much more visible, and smoother to traverse compared to the rigid, broken road of the dark left. I also wanted to resemble safety, so I had also sketched more fence posts, and unlike the last one, these would not break and would be more efficient compared to the dark counterpart. In terms of the tone of the colors I was using, I wanted all the colors I would use to have a tint of yellow over it, even the road. This would resemble the daylight present in the artwork. This worked to some extent. While the color did stay well, even on the darker colors, they did affect my ability to implement texture later on in the work. Because I had used brighter colors, it would become more difficult to use brighter colors for texture later.
Then, to finalize the project, I had focused on the detail between the fences and the sky. Between the fence, I mostly wanted to include something growing, akin to wheat. I wanted this to resemble growth present in the daylight; something that is not nearly as visible in the dark. I had managed to find the color I wanted to use, however, it was hard to shape out the stalks individually. This caused it to appear like a massive of color, looking much more like a different shade of grass rather than growing stalks. Similar to the dark portion, it also became difficult to add the wiring of the fences. They ended up being smeared and looking similar to entire, transparent boards rather than wires. It also became difficult to implement the white color over the "wheat" that had been developed, due to how light the color is. In regards to the sky, I wanted to keep it relatively simple. I would add a monotone, light blue color across the entire area, and later lighten it with white to resemble the clouds of the sky. This worked to some extent, but the flaws really began to show the day after it was finished. The white had become more saturated as it dried, making it a much stronger white than I had intended. It also revealed some of the areas I had made brush strokes, making it look somewhat unrealistic.
Reflection
In terms of my use of technique in this project, I feel as though it as significantly improved, but has still not reached my personal criteria. I am aware that I still have areas to improve. As for how I present my work thematically, I feel as though I have also improved. I feel as though I would be able to explain my theme, and how the choices I have used in my project connects to that theme effectively. I feel as though I have also considerably improved my ability to manage myself before and during my work. I have given myself considerably more time to work with, as well as successfully managed to prepare enough paint for my work. Because I have prepared more paint beforehand, this had minimized the amount of unintentional tone changes present in the work. Despite that, I feel as though my overall work with color still has room for improvement. There are still colors that are noticeably more dark than I had intended it to be, similar to my previous projects. I still consider this to be a better attempt, as the dark colors are not nearly as prominent as they were before. However, my use of texture in my work does not seemed to have improved. The overall composition of the artwork is way more smooth than I intended for it to be, and the use of tone in the work also made it more difficult to implement texture without it standing out. The darker colors made it difficult to add dark texture and vise versa. I also found it difficult to individualize any objects present in the work. The "wheat" ended up appearing as a mass of different color grass rather than individual stalks that were intended. The "wiring" of the fences were difficult to implement in thin strokes without the color standing out too strongly. This resulted in the "wires" being far more wide than intended. Overall, I feel like this project was a slight step forward. There was improvement present, but still not quite at the level I had wanted it to be.
Compare and Contrast
My work, similar to Valecka's work, relied heavily on the use of color. It is essentially the strongest factor of both of the works. They are not necessarily heavy on texture, though some is made. My work attempts to replicate a level of tone across the work, primarily with blue and yellow colors, to resemble the time of day. Valecka does this process to a much stronger extent, being able to describe the complexity of the sunset with blue, red, and yellow colors. My work also attempts to add some detail, primarily on the left side, to show the things visible to the side of the road, rather than empty space. We are also capable of developing our backgrounds, being able to include tall things such as buildings or hills. Our work, however, is far apart in terms of the effectiveness of our technique. Valecka is able to effectively blend together more clearly, and with the use of more colors than I can. Valecka also has a stronger sense of proportions, being able to develop relatively clear shapes at an understandable distance. My work lacks this effective proportion, some things appearing bigger or smaller than they should be, especially since this project should be considered going across a relatively long distance. Lastly, Valecka is able to differentiate the objects in his work to a much stronger extent than I can. Things such as buildings, plant life, and shape of roads are recognizable as an individual object. I struggled with this work in my project, as somethings, such as wheat and wires, did not come out as an individual piece, but rather a mixed mass of color.
ACT Questions
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
My artwork heavily affected how I wanted to approach the development of my artwork. I wanted to use this inspiration as a chance to improve upon the techniques I have been using prior, primarily my use of color and texture in my works. This led to me improving upon my ability to manage and develop my colors
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Valecka's work often seems to focus on the variety and changes that can appear rather than a focus of time or opportunities. His work focuses heavily on similar landscapes in varying situations. For example, his works frequently have roads that lead to buildings, cold locations, or on one occasion, an explosion.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
While going through my research, I wanted to expand more upon the opportunities that are frequently present in daily life. A lot of things are easier to reach and much more accessible in the day compared to the night. The night is often hard to see or think through, it can be dangerous, and a lot more things aren't available during the night.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
Much like my prior projects, I wanted to focus around my theme of time. However, this time I wanted to expand upon how it affects life rather than how time passes. I wanted to reflect what changes between night and day, rather than what happens when time simply flows.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
While reading my research, I made inferences, primarily about how I wanted to expand my technique. This resulted in me changing some of the ways I approached things, especially in terms of how I approached a project. It also influenced my view on my themes. Valeck's work of similar areas in varying situations made me think about how time influences what we can do rather than how it passes. It made me think about how one theme can have multiple impacts.
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
My artwork heavily affected how I wanted to approach the development of my artwork. I wanted to use this inspiration as a chance to improve upon the techniques I have been using prior, primarily my use of color and texture in my works. This led to me improving upon my ability to manage and develop my colors
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Valecka's work often seems to focus on the variety and changes that can appear rather than a focus of time or opportunities. His work focuses heavily on similar landscapes in varying situations. For example, his works frequently have roads that lead to buildings, cold locations, or on one occasion, an explosion.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
While going through my research, I wanted to expand more upon the opportunities that are frequently present in daily life. A lot of things are easier to reach and much more accessible in the day compared to the night. The night is often hard to see or think through, it can be dangerous, and a lot more things aren't available during the night.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
Much like my prior projects, I wanted to focus around my theme of time. However, this time I wanted to expand upon how it affects life rather than how time passes. I wanted to reflect what changes between night and day, rather than what happens when time simply flows.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
While reading my research, I made inferences, primarily about how I wanted to expand my technique. This resulted in me changing some of the ways I approached things, especially in terms of how I approached a project. It also influenced my view on my themes. Valeck's work of similar areas in varying situations made me think about how time influences what we can do rather than how it passes. It made me think about how one theme can have multiple impacts.
Bibliography
https://www.valecka.eu/media/display/83aabd4b1e0d04566723ceb25d0c7d99047dec69.jpg - Image Source
https://www.valecka.eu/media/display/83aabd4b1e0d04566723ceb25d0c7d99047dec69.jpg - Image Source